Process for the production of soap powder.



No. 890,078. PATENTED JUNBQ, 1908. W. LURING.

PROCESS FOR THE PRODUCTION OF SOAP POWDER.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 11. 1907.

$561M e3: I haenivr UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILHELM LI'iRINo, or HANOVER, GERMANY, ASSIGNOR TO THE FIRM or once. KORTING AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT, OF KORTINGSDORF, NEAR HANOVER, GERMANY.

PROCESS FOR THE PRODUCTION OF SOAP POWDERQ Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June e, 1908.

Application filed. November 11, 1907. Serial No. 401,729. v

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILHELM LfinINe, a subject of the King of Prussia, and resident of 9 Klagesmarkt, of the city of Hanover, German Empire, have invented a certain new and useful Process for the Production of Soap Powder, of which the following is an exact specification.

Hitherto the production of soap powder from a watery soap mass has been effected by highly heating the mass under pressure and then discharging the heated mass suddenly into a large space or room so as to effect a quick pressure fall.

This process has the disadvantage that as a matter of fact the sea powder is not obtained in a fine mealy an dry state but takes the form of a somewhat moist deposit after the pressure drop when the material is blown out of the heating container. This deposit, on account of its moisture, after cooling forms into more or less large masses.

The reason of the heated and moist state of the soap mass may be explained as follows: The removal of the soa y mass from the container takes place und er a pressure fall so that the evaporation of the moisture in the soap mass, in consequence of the gradual decrease of pressure in the container, becomes smaller and smaller. This means that the heat taken from the soap mass for effecting the evaporation is always decreasing. In this way the moisture and the temperature of the deposit is maintained and thereby necessarily contribute to the formation of v large cakes in the de osit. This objectionable caking is avoide by the process according to the present invention which consists in highly heating the soap in the pressure container by steam led from beneath and mixed with the soap mass, then while still mainbeen brought to the desired state of moisture" by boiling is led by a pipe 9 into a vessel a into the lower. part of which steam is led at b. In large vessels the steam is preferably led in in ring form or simultaneously at several points distributed over the under part of the vessel, and passes through the soapy mass and is perfectly mixed withthe same, whereby in consequence of the lower temperature of the soapy mass in relation to the steam a partial condensation of the steam occurs and the soapy mass thereby enriched in water. After a short time the soa )y mass reaches the same tem erature as the steam which is consider-ab y higher than that at which the water is evaporated under the atmospheric pressure. If the steam is led into the mass from above only a superficial mixing takes place and the lower layers remain unheated and unmoistened by the condensed steam as proved by experiments. It is therefore of 1m )ortanee to lead the steam from the bottom 0 the vessel. As soon as the soapy mass in the vessel has been brought to the temperature of the steam, which can be determined very readily by means of thermometers placed at c c in con junction with the upper and lower ends of the vessel, the soapy mass is blown out .through a nozzle 0? and a pipe e, leading from the lower part of the vessel for that purpose, the steam supply to the vessel remaining the same and the pressure on the soapy mass being also kept constant. During the blowing out of the soapy mass, as it is suddenly subjected to a greatly reduced pressure and its temperature is considerably higher than the temperature of evaporation at this lower pressure, a rapid evaporation ensues and the whole mass is formed as an extremely fine powder.

The formation of the steam requires a.

considerable quantity of heat which is chiefly taken from the pulverized soapy mass, so-that the soap particles are soon cooled, fall and collect on the floor of the room and show. no inclination to form into large cakes or lumps. As, according to the present invention, a gradual pressure fall in the vessel is avoided, the outflowing soapy mass possesses the same temperature as the highly heated steam which is fed to the boiler and in consequence the evaporation of the water in the soapy mass continues steadily and in the same energetic manner during the whole period of the outpouring.

In this way a clear and uncaked soap powder is obtained.

Having thus fully described the nature of my invention, what I desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:-

1. A process for producing soap powder. comprising the placing of the soapy mass in a container, heating and moistening with steam under pressure, blowing off the soapy mass while the pressure within the container is maintained.

2. A roeess for produeing soap powder,-

- comprising the placing ofthe soapy mass m a container, heating the same under pressure by steam passed h'om below, blowing off the heated mass while the steam ressure is still maintained, substantially as eseribed.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of two witnesses.

WILHELM LURING.

Witnesses:

ROBERT v. Bt'rL0w, WILHELM GUNDELACH. 

